Remember Me?
by lexa.d
Summary: Someone from Mac's past comes back, leaving him fighting for his life. Can the rest of the crew figure out who it was?
1. Chapter 1

So, the usual disclaimer; I don't own the show or anyone on the show (sadly).

This is my first story so I hope you guys enjoy!

Mac Taylor watched as Detective Flack cuffed the man in the interrogation room and dragged him down the hall. They had just wrapped up a case, drug addict looking for a fix; took the life of a mother of two. Took them weeks to catch book this guy for murder. He turned and saw Lindsay making the call to the husband so he in turn could tell his two kids. _A bit of closure_, Mac thought.

"Another day down." Jo put her hand on Mac's shoulder.

"And another bad guy put away." Mac added with a deep sigh, continuing to stare at the inner workings of his crime lab. The weight of the case finally lifted from him, leaving him drained and tired.

"And tomorrow's going to be another day." Jo offered a smile. "Everything ok Mac?"

"Just drained." Mac offered a brief smile before heading back to his office to sort out the affairs of the day. He nodded as Danny and Lindsay waved their goodbyes for the evening, on their way home to Lucy. Mac took a quick skim through the file of the latest case before filing it away. A knock on the glass startled Mac. He waved Flack in.

"Hey Mac, a few of us were thinking dinner and a few drinks. You in?" Don said, poking his head in.

"I think I'm going to call it a night. I'm pretty beat. Thanks though." Mac replied, shutting his filing cabinet.

"You sure? Just a few – to unwind?"

"I'm good. Thanks though. You guys have a good night."

"Well, if you change your mind we'll be at the usual spot."

"Thanks." Mac waved a goodbye to Jo, Hawkes, Adam and Sid as they got on the elevator.

"Mac not coming?" Jo asked.

"Nah. Too tired." Flack replied.

"That's what happens when you work non-stop, with no sleep." Hawkes added as the elevator doors shut. "Man needs a vacation."

Mac turned back to his desk, cleaned up a few things and shut the lights off for the night. A nice beer and a shower would do him some good.

"Hey Mike." Mac waved to the security guard at the front desk.

"Detective Taylor," the older man nodded back. "Make the streets a little safer today?"

"Don't I always?" Mac offered a smirk, to which Mike chuckled at. "Have a good night Mike."

"You as well Detective." With that sentiment, Mac got onto the elevator and headed up to his warm apartment, glad to be out of the chilly fall air.

The elevator ride up seemed like an eternity. Mac was drained. He couldn't believe just how tired he was. His body felt heavier than usual. The long days with no sleep or food were taking their toll on his body. _You're not a young marine anymore. Maybe they're right. Maybe it is time to take it easy_, Mac thought – as he often thought to himself. One day he figured he'd listen to his body.

As Mac entered his home he placed his keys in the bowl by the front door and took off his coat. He hung it up and began to take of his suit. He pulled his t-shirt out of his pants and hung his suit jacket and button up shirt over the coach. Making his way over to the kitchen, Mac checked the time: 11:26pm. _Good. I can still catch the Colbert Report_. He opened his fridge and a beer sat there, practically calling his name. It seemed as though the beverage was waiting for him, in the center of the fridge, almost as though it had been pulled forward. Mac was glad for that.

Popping it open he took a long gulp, finishing nearly half the bottle at once. _A much needed drink_. A moment later he felt a sharp pain in his stomach, but it dissipated quickly. _Must be hungry_.

Mac opened his fridge and looked for something to eat but was met with a very dismal sight; some condiments, bread, and leftover chicken, nothing appealing. Most of his fruits and vegetables had gone bad. He'd hardly been home since this case came across his desk. He opted to go back to his beer and just head to bed. As he took another gulp the pain in his stomach returned, a little more intense this time.

He tried to shake the feeling that something was wrong, but having some difficulty. Mac's hands began to shake; the pain in his stomach quickly making it's way to the rest of his body. He turned to try and make a move to a chair, the beer slipping out of his shaking hands and shattering into little pieces on the floor.

Mac quickly located the phone mounted on the wall a few feet away and made his way over, stepping over the broken glass.

"Ugh….god." Mac groaned as he tried to move. He stumbled into a bar stool by the island and fell to the floor before he could reach the phone.

Landing on his right side, he felt a searing pain shoot up his arm and into his shoulder making him briefly wonder if he'd dislocated it.

The world around his began to shake. The corners of his vision turned black, the pain making it hard for him to take a breath, his whole body shaking now. He could feel the pain coursing through his veins, making their way from his stomach to his chest and then to the rest of his body. With each beat of his heart it felt as though a poison were being pushed into his system, burning through his vessels.

"Ughhhh….oh…..g-god." Mac moaned. He tried to make another move for his phone but the feeling of a hot, metal rod stabbing him repeatedly in the head kept him grounded. His vision became hazy and his limbs heavy.

Suddenly, Mac felt hands on his left shoulder and he was flung onto his back. Mac was met with a cold, menacing smile and familiar brown eyes.

"Hello Detective Taylor. Remember me?"


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry about the formatting of the last chapter. Still trying to figure out the site. First story and all =).

As well, I'm from Canada and I have no idea where anything in New York City is, so all my directions and streets are made up. I tried looking at a map…didn't end well, lol.

Thanks for the reviews and I hope you guys enjoy!

* * *

><p>"Hey guys, I just gotta hit the bank. I'll meet you there in a few minutes." Flack said as he turned down Seventh Avenue.<p>

"We'll have a beer waiting for you." Hawkes waved.

"Sounds good."

As Flack walked down the street the cool breeze stung his bare skin. Doing up his coat he stuck his hands in the pockets in an attempt to keep warm. There was a small line-up when he reached the ATM. He tried bouncing on his feet to keep himself warm. _Winter's coming_, he thought bitterly.

He was now next in line.

_Come on buddy. Just a bit faster_, Flack thought as he continued to bounce on his feet.

The older man smiled politely as he made a move to leave, but turned back. _Seriously?_ Flack thought.

"Forgot my receipt." He chuckled.

"No problem." Flack offered a brief smile and quickly made his way to the machine. Sticking his card in he quickly found the withdrawal option and, after seeing the empty money slot, decided on two hundred.

He had only made it a few feet from the ATM when his phone rang.

Pulling it out of his pocket he looked at the name; _Mac Taylor Home_. A smirk made it's way to his face as he answered the call.

"Change your mind?" Flack answered, but was met with silence. "Mac?" Again, he was met with no response.

He could hear what he thought was heavy, labored breathing, mixed in with what sounded like someone shuffling across the floor.

"_D-Do…elp_."

"Mac? What's going on? Are you ok?" Stopping dead in his tracks, a sick feeling grew in his stomach, as he listened very intently. No answer this time, but he heard what he could have sworn was the phone hitting the floor.

He looked behind him. It was only a few blocks to where Mac lived. The traffic was heavy at this time on a Friday night.

"I'm on my way." With that, Flack turned and headed back down passed the ATM as quick as he could.

* * *

><p>Jo looked down at the table where her phone was vibrating.<p>

"It's Flack. I'll just take this outside where it's quieter." She got up and made her way to the door. "Hey. Everything ok?"

"On…my way…to Mac's." She could hear Flack panting.

"What happened? Are you running?"

"Yes. Something's…wrong. He called…me…no answer." Flack panted, trying to keep up his pace.

"What do you mean no answer? Never mind." She could feel his urgency and figured her questions would only slow him down. "I'll call for back up and we'll meet you at Mac's as quick as we can." With that, she hung up the phone and made her way back to the table.

"Hey, you have to hear this. Sid was just about to tell us about this case he worked on with Mac." Hawkes motioned Jo to sit.

"Everything ok?" Sid questioned, noticing the slightly confused and worried look on Jo's face.

"No. Flack called. Something's wrong with Mac. He's on his way there now. I told him we'd call for back up and meet him there."

"He didn't say what was wrong?" Adam asked, getting up and throwing his coat on.

"No. He was running though. He sounded very…urgent." Jo responded pulling money out of her wallet and throwing it on the table. She left more than enough to cover the two pitchers they had ordered but didn't care to wait around for the change.

They all made their way out of the bar and hailed the first two taxis they could.

"Maiden Lane and Eighth. As fast as you can." Jo hastily told the driver while flashing her badge.

Hawkes dialed the number for the emergency dispatch center to call for their back up.

"You got it." With that, they were off.

* * *

><p>Flack pulled the front door open, pulled out his badge and flashed it to the security guard at the front desk.<p>

"Detec…tive Flack." He panted as he hit the up button for the elevators.

"Hey, wait. What's going on?" Mike got up and followed Flack. "Hey, you work with Detective Taylor, don't you? I've seen you around here."

"Yes. He called. He's…in trouble." Flack held his chest as he tried to find some air and looked at the number indications for the elevators. "Damnit." The numbers _7, 13 _and _5_ shone in neon red. Flack made a move for the stairs and was gone before Mike could say another word.

At first, he took the stairs two at a time, but eventually the tightening of his leg muscles got the best of him. It felt like an eternity before he finally reached the 17th floor. He could feel his heart racing, his lungs aching for air, his legs were like jello, but the adrenaline and fear kept him going.

Within second, he stood in front of _1707_. He couldn't stop his hands from shaking as he wrapped his fingers around the door handle and turned it – it opened. He pulled his gun out of its holster as he took a cautious step in and looked around.

The first thing that caught his eye was the phone's wall mount hanging off the wall by its cord and a knocked over bar stool. He made his way over, eyes scanning the room for any movement.

Suddenly he felt his heart leap into his throat. He could see Mac's legs, twitching, from around the side of the island.

He quickly moved toward his friend.

"Mac?" He looked in shock as his friend lay, face down, seizing. "Oh god." Flack grabbed Mac and turned him onto his back, holding him in his arms.

"Oh my god." Flack looked up, startled, to see Mike looking down at him while he held a seizing Mac in his arms. "What happened?" Panic evident in his face.

"I don't know. Back up should be on their way here. Go let them in." Flack responded, not making eye contact. He was busy scanning the room, looking for any clues as to what might have happened. The broken beer bottle to the left of him caught his eyes.

Flack's heart skipped a beat. _Oh god. Please, no_. The body in his arms had gone flaccid.

"Mac? Mac?" Flack looked down and was met with two pale blue eyes, half opened, looking straight ahead. "Mac? No. No! Wake up!"

Flack put Mac down and felt for a pulse as he looked for the rise and fall of his chest.

He saw and felt nothing.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for the reviews everybody. Glad you guys are enjoying.

* * *

><p>As the two cabs came near to Maiden Lane, the occupants in them could see the flashing red, blue and yellow lights bouncing off the walls of the surrounding buildings. They made the quick turn onto the street and again Jo passed a few bills, not paying attention to how much had left her hands.<p>

Pulling out their badges, the group walked into the building together bypassing the police and heading straight to the elevators. The ride up was a very tense and quiet one, everyone unsure of what the scene would bring.

As they approached Mac's door, a young cop stepped forward to stop them.

"This is-"

"Crime lab. We know the vi…patient." Jo stuttered, not quite sure which Mac was at the moment.

The cop nodded and stepped out of the way. As they entered the condo the words that flew through the room hit each of them like a brick wall.

"Everybody off the patient. Analyzing."

A mechanical voice responded a few second after, "_Shock advised_."

"Clear the patient. Shocking now." They could hear the sound of the cardiac monitor delivering the shock and saw Mac's whole body twitch. "Continue CPR."

Staying out of the way, they watched as Flack continued CPR, a medic giving a shot of epinephrine and then another of atropine through an IV port in Mac's left hand and the other medic at Mac's head holding a bag-valve-mask by his face which was attached to an oxygen tank as well as a tube that was protruding out of Mac's mouth. Every few seconds or so, the medic would give the bag a slow squeeze and they would see Mac's chest inflated and then deflate.

They looked their friend over. The veins on the visible parts of his body were protruding noticeably; his fingers tips were a blue-purple color, his skin pale, and eyes sunken. His lips were the same blue-purple shade as his fingertips.

"That's five." Flack called pulling himself off of the man on the floor and wiping the sweat from his forehead. If he had noticed his friends enter, he made no notion.

"Everybody off the patient." The medic manning the IV called and looked at his cardiac monitor. "Analyzing now."

The same mechanical voice responded, "_No shock advised_. _Check patient._"

The medic quickly placed two fingers on Mac's neck feeling for his carotid pulse.

"We have a pulse. Matches the monitor." He called, the monitor beeping at away at 36 beats a minute. "Elevate his head 30 degrees." He quickly checked Mac's blood pressure and his pupillary response. "Let's go."

A cop came up, seemingly from nowhere, with a backboard and placed it on the floor next to Mac. The medic breathing for Mac grabbed a hold of his head while Flack and the other medic turned him onto his left side – which was when Hawkes noticed Mac's dislocated right shoulder – and the cop put the backboard underneath. They placed Mac onto it, situated him and the two medics got ready to lift.

"Detective, can you hold his arms and officer you push the stretcher underneath?" The medic at the foot of the backboard, seemingly in charge, called out.

"Yes." Flack and the officer called at once.

"Okay guys, on my count." The medic at the head called. "One, two, three."

They lifted him straight up; Flack held Mac's arms across his chest while the officer pushed the stretcher underneath. The two medics lowered him and they quickly got him strapped in and got ready to go.

"Need a hand?" Flack offered.

"Love one." The first medic responded while he swung the trauma bag over his shoulders and attached the cardiac monitor to the stretcher. The other medic quickly attached the oxygen tank to the head of the stretcher and made a move for the door. Flack for the first time noticed that his friends had arrived.

For a moment, Flack faltered.

"Go. We'll take care of the scene." Hawkes told him.

"Call us if _anything_ changes." Jo added.

With a nod, Flack was off with the medics leaving the rest of the crime lab in a daze. They had no idea where to begin.

They tried to take in all the different parts to the scene. The phone ripped off the wall, the broken beer bottle in the kitchen, the empty wrappings from the drugs and equipment the medics had used.

"Okay." Jo finally broke the silence. Turning to the officers she called, "Tape off the scene. No one gets in or out, no one touches anything, got it?"

The officers nodded their acknowledgements.

"Should we head to the hospital?" Adam asked.

"There's no point right now. They're going to run some tests; Mac will be in surgery more than likely. Flack will call if anything changes." She took a deep breath. It hurt her to not follow after Mac. "We won't be any good there, but we can do something here." Jo added.

"I'll go to the lab and grab our gear." Hawkes responded.

"I'll give you a hand." Sid said following Hawkes out of the building.

Jo turned to Adam. "Call Danny and Lindsay and then start processing the scene."

Turning to the officers that were left, Jo called out, "Who wants to get me up to date on what happened?"

* * *

><p>"Danny, the phone's ringing." Lindsay yawned, giving her husband a nudge with her foot.<p>

Danny put his glasses on and looked at the time.

"Who the hell is calling at 12:23 in the morning?"

"Just get it before it wakes Lucy." Lindsay responded, turning on her side.

"Yes your majesty." Danny said sitting up.

As he picked up the receiver he felt a pillow meet the back of his head. A smile found its way to his face. "Hello?" He yawned into the receiver. "Adam? What the hell? It's 12:30 in the morning. What's…what? What happened? Is he ok?" Danny felt Lindsay shuffling next to him as she sat up. "Ok. We'll try to get a sitter and head over. Let us know if you leave." With that, Danny slowly hung up the phone.

Lindsay watched as her husband slowly hung up the receiver but didn't let go. He was tense and staring at the floor.

"Danny?" At first he didn't respond. "Danny, what's going on?"

"It's Mac. Something happened. Adam thinks someone tried to kill him."

"What? Oh my god. Is he ok?"

"He's on his way to the hospital now. Flacks with him. They're going to start processing the scene. Adam said he'd call if they leave for the hospital before we get there."

Lindsay sat for a moment, taking in all the information. Where would they get sitter at this time of night? Who would hurt Mac?

"We could call Mrs. Bernick. She might still be up at this time." Danny finally broke the silence.

"She's 62. There's no way she's still up." Lindsay responded.

Mrs. Bernick was a retired teacher. She still did tutoring and some babysitting on the side for a bit of extra cash. They had been dealing with her since Lucy was born.

"How about we try Jenna? She's 22 and would be up for sure. If she's out, we'll call Mrs. Bernick." Danny turned to look at his wife.

Lindsay nodded and reached over him for the receiver.

* * *

><p>On the way to Mac's, Danny and Lindsay received identical text messages: <em>Meet at St. Mike's<em>.

"Hey, change of plans. Head to St. Mike's instead." Danny called to the driver.

"No problem sir."

The ride was spent in silence. There were a thousand questions rolling their heads, but no one to answer them.

It was now nearly 3am. They had managed to get a hold of Jenna, but had to wait for her to get back across the city to their place.

As they pulled up to the hospital, Lindsay could feel her stomach churn. She had no idea what to expect. The whole time they had spent waiting at the apartment all she wanted to do was go and see Mac or at least help process the scene, but now that she was looking up at the hospital, she wanted to turn back and runaway. She wasn't sure she wanted to face whatever was up there.

The walk through hospital was quick and deliberate. They turned a corner and saw their friends at the nurses' desk. As they made their way over, Lindsay had the same feeling of wanting to runaway, to pretend this was all just a bad dream. She silently willed herself to wake up.

"Thank you." Jo said to the nurse and turned to face Lindsay and Danny.

"Sorry we're late. We had to wait for the sitter." Lindsay offered. "Is there any news?"

"Don't worry about it. Nothing you can do. Not sure. We just got here too." Hawkes responded.

"What did you find at the scene?"

"Nothing yet, but there's still lots to process. Flack said Mac was out of surgery so we came right away." Jo responded as they made their way down the hall.

The walk down the hall felt like it had taken an eternity. When they reached Mac's room, the feeling of wanting to leave overtook Lindsay once again. She faltered in her step. She was glad Danny was there, with his arm around her, to help keep her composure. It seemed that everyone was feeling the same.

Jo took a deep breath and opened the door slowly as she knocked.

When she peered in she was taken aback by the image in front of her. It took her a moment to compose herself and enter the room. She could feel that behind her everyone was feeling the same.

Mac lay on the bed, an IV started in his left hand. There were 3 different colored bags hanging off the IV pole. A tube protruding from Mac's mouth was taped to hold it into place. The cardiac monitor above his bed was beeping away, slowly and quietly. A machine stood to the right of Mac's bed. She recognized it as a dialysis machine. A couple of wires coming from it were attached just underneath the right side of Mac's collarbone where the doctors had placed an access catheter. His right arm was resting on an extra pillow, bent at the elbow to his hand rested on his stomach.

After the initial shock of Mac's condition had passed, they turned their attention to Flack. He sat in a chair on Mac's left staring forward at nothing. He looked shaken, upset, and angry. He was pale and his hands rested in tight fists on his thighs. He said nothing and made no motion to move.

Jo made her way over and sat on the armrest of the chair and put her arms on Flack's shoulders.

"He's in a coma. Someone tried to poison him. He went into acute renal failure. He has to do dialysis for 3 months, 4 times a week. After that, they'll check to see if it repaired his kidney function. They want to check his brain function, but he's too-" Flack fought back the tears, "unstable right now. The tests might be too much for him and kill him."

No one knew what to say. They had no idea how to take the news. No idea what this meant for their friend.

"It's rare for kidney function to come back, but not impossible." Sid broke the silence.

"I've seen it happen. And Mac's in great shape. He'll be able to pull through this." Hawkes added, trying to reassure Flack.

"He's tough. If anyone can pull through this, it's Mac." Lindsay added, hoping to reassure Flack.

"The doctors say he'll be lucky to make it till morning." Flack quietly shot back, turning away the reassurances being offered. "What did you guys find at the scene?"

"Nothing yet, but we still have so much to process. We'll find something." Jo responded.

After another moment of silence, Flack pushed himself off the chair and left the room.

Jo made a move to follow him but Danny put his hand up to stop her.

"I got this."

Danny turned and quickly made his way after Flack.

"Hey, Flack. Slow down. Slow down, man." He called after his friend.

Flack stopped and leaned against a wall with his back. He dropped his head back into the wall with a thud and stared up at the ceiling, his eyes welling.

Danny wasn't really sure how to proceed with this. He gripped Flack shoulders and squeezed them tightly. "We're going to get whoever did this. I swear, if it's the last thing I do, I'm going to find the son-of-a-bitch and lock him up forever."

After another moment of silence, Flack swallowed hard. "I can't get that image out of head." He whispered, trying his best to hold the tears back. "When I looked down…his eyes-" Flack choked and a few rogue tears made their way down his face, "they were so empty, Danny. Mac was gone."

Danny squeezed his shoulders tighter and pulled Flack into him. As he held his friend tight, he could feel his own eyes well.

"What if he never comes back?" Flack quietly asked.

Danny felt tears run down his face. _What if Mac never did come back?_

"He will. He has too."


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry for the delay in this chapter. I'm right in the middle of moving so things have been hectic. I hope you guys enjoy and I will get the next chapter up ASAP.

Thanks for the reviews!

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><p>"What else can you tell us doctor?" Jo asked. They were all seated in the waiting room with Mac's doctor and surgeon, hoping to get some good news.<p>

"Well, we know methanol was used. He must have ingested approximately 5-8 milliliters of it to have caused this much damage to his system." The doctor responded.

"What damage was there exactly?" Danny asked, unsure of whether or not he wanted to hear the details.

"Along with the impaired kidney function, there was some minor vascular damage to his veins and arteries, but nothing a healthy diet and exercise couldn't handle. The dialysis _should_ repair his kidney function and clean out his blood. We won't know for sure until the 3 months of dialysis are up. As you know, due to his condition we can't currently check for any damage to brain function," the doctor paused and then added, "but the moment he becomes stable we will be checking." The doctor could see that those last few words hit everyone hard. "The dislocated shoulder should heal with no problems. There were no fractures or anything found around the area." He added, trying to end on a good note.

"Any liver damage?" Hawkes questioned, knowing full well that if methanol was left in the system long enough it would destroy the liver.

"Thankfully, no. His liver was able to keep itself clear until we could get him into surgery." The surgeon responded.

"We'll keep you updated on his condition at all times. If anything changes, we will call. Is there a number I can reach one of you at?" The doctor asked.

"Yes. Here's my card." Jo responded handing the doctor her card. "Thank you for your help."

"I hope you get whoever did this. I've had the pleasure of meeting Detective Taylor before and he does not deserve this. He's a good man." The doctor said taking Jo's card and shaking her hand.

With that, the surgeon and the doctor were off to get cleaned up.

They all sat and thought about the doctor's words; Mac did not deserve this.

"Now what?" Adam asked, breaking the silence.

"Let's get back to work. Adam, you figure out how Mac's security alarm was disabled. Danny, Lindsay, Hawkes, you guys go back to Mac's and continue processing the scene. Sid and I will examine Mac for any other evidence." Jo stood up and got ready to move.

"I'll talk to the security guard, get the tapes from tonight and-"

"Don, go home. Get some rest." Jo cut him off.

"We can handle this for now. Grab a couple hours sleep." Danny added.

"Mac's in there hanging by a thread and you want me to _sleep_?" Flack shot back angrily. "There's no fucking way I'm not doing whatever I can to catch this asshole."

"Flack-" Lindsay started.

"Don't." Flack cut her off and stormed out.

They all watched after him.

"Should we…I…" Adam trailed off.

"No. He needs this right now. We'll let him do his thing and hopefully cool off." Jo responded. She stared at the door he had just gone through, worried. She knew he was taking this harder than any of them.

* * *

><p>Danny, Lindsay and Hawkes returned to the crime scene. Lindsay and Danny tried for the first time to take everything in. As with everybody else, their eyes were drawn to the phone hanging by it's cord, the knocked over stool and broken beer bottle in the kitchen. Nothing else seemed to be out of place.<p>

"What do we know so far?" Danny asked.

"Well, we know the lock was jimmied open. There are scrapings on the inside of the lock that don't match Mac's key." Hawkes responded.

"And we know they disabled Mac's alarm." Lindsay added, looking at the alarm. "It's not broken, so they either knew his code or have some kind of tool to disarm it."

They all took a quick look around the room.

"Okay, lets try to retrace Mac's steps." Hawkes called. "His coat and shirt are on the couch. So he came in, started to undress and grabbed a beer." Hawkes made the motions of placing the clothing over the back of the couch and then moving to the kitchen. They envisioned their friend coming home after a long couple of weeks, wanting a nice cold drink and to relax.

"There are three beers left. How did Mac know to grab the poisoned one?" Lindsay questioned.

"They gotta all be poisoned." Danny thought aloud and snapped a few photos of the inside of the fridge.

"That's what we thought too." Hawkes said. "Let's get these to the lab for testing."

"Whoever did this wanted Mac to suffer; a lot." Danny said, the anger apparent on his face.

* * *

><p>"I've performed a lot of autopsy, but I never thought I'd have to do one on Mac." Sid said as he and Jo stood over their friend.<p>

"It's not an autopsy. He's still alive. This is just a regular examination for any evidence that might have been left behind." Jo responded, not sure if she was trying to reassure Sid or herself.

Sid nodded and the two began with him on Mac's right and Jo was on Mac's left. Each of them began by scrapping underneath Mac's nails.

"Hey, I've got some fibers caught in Mac's nail." Sid called out.

"Any idea what it might be?"

"No. Looks like…black threads." Sid moved Mac's arm slightly to allow Jo a clear view. He was very gentle, remembering the shoulder dislocation.

"So, maybe Mac tried to grab at whoever was there. Caught a bit of his pants?" Jo speculated.

"No defensive wounds on the arms or hands." Sid added. "The pain kept him grounded if he did. He didn't get much."

They continued with their inspection. They pulled the sheets down and began to look for any signs of a struggle on the rest of his body.

"Bruising and swelling around his right shoulder is consistent with a fall." Sid said.

"There's bruising to his left shoulder." Jo said, trying to take a better look.

Sid came around and had a look. "It looks like…finger marks."

"So, Mac fell on his right and our attacker turned Mac over onto his back, forcefully." Jo placed her hands over the bruising. "Thumb imprint on the back side of his shoulder as well. Perfect fit."

"The attacker was there while Mac was dying." Sid said.

"But why not stay for the whole show?"

* * *

><p>The sun was starting to rise when they met back at the crime lab. The night was starting to take its toll on them. Their bodies ached, minds raced but no solid thoughts seemed to form. They sat around the table hoping someone had some good news.<p>

"Okay…who wants to go first?" Jo asked while sipping her coffee.

"Well, we analyzed the last three beers in Mac's fridge; they were poisoned as well." Hawkes said.

"There's a syringe sized hole on all the caps, including the one we fished out of the garbage. That's how they got the poison in." Danny added.

"Our attacker wasn't taking any chances." Lindsay concluded and sighed. "No fingerprints, no fibers…nothing. Whoever it was knew what they were doing."

"There's always a clue. We'll just have to look harder." Hawkes said.

"The security guard was no help. No suspicious activity, no one asking about Mac recently, nothing. Surveillance shows he was at his desk the whole time until I got there." Flack added. He leaned back in his seat and stared up at the ceiling. "I brought the security tapes here and the sign in book for guests."

Flack didn't have to say anything to them for them to know he was taking this hard – they could see it on his face. He had been there with Mac and unable to do anything.

"Our examination of Mac brought up some odd questions." Sid said and put his glasses on.

Jo turned to the screen and pulled up the pictures they had taken of Mac. It hurt her to see his face up there.

"We found bruising to his left shoulder consistent with finger marks. Whoever the attacker is was in the condo with Mac." Jo pointed to the pictures on the screen. "Finger markings on the front and back."

"He fell on his right side – which is when he dislocated his shoulder – and then was turned onto his back to face his attacker." Sid added. "We found black fibers in his fingernails. We think he may have tried to grab at his attacker and caught his pants."

"What we can't figure out is, why didn't he stay to make sure Mac was dead?" Jo asked to no one in particular.

Everyone contemplated the rhetorical question. Until they could face Mac's attacker, this one, as many others it seemed, would remain unanswered.

"What did you find Adam?" Jo asked.

"Oh…um…I looked into tools that can disable Mac's specific security system. There's hundreds." Adam said. "If you google it, there's tons of sites on how to build a machine to break security codes, or you can just buy one. His security system is a very common one and plenty of ways to hack it. I read all sorts of-"

"Adam." Jo cut him off.

"Right. Sorry. My best guess is whoever did this used the latest version, Secure Decode." He brought the image up. "State of the art, easy to find on the black market and incredibly effective. The magnet attaches itself to the security system and disarms it. No evidence that you were even there. When you're done, you rearm it and you have 30 seconds to get in or out."

"Or hide." Danny added.

"There was no evidence that the security system was tampered with." Hawkes added.

"We did find a shoe imprint in the washroom off of the living room." Lindsay said. "Unfortunately, it's the sole imprint to a Rockport shoe, which thousands of people own." She pulled the picture up for everyone to see.

"This guy knew Mac's schedule inside and out. When he got home, what he did when he got home. How the hell could he have pulled this off?" Danny asked.

"He must have been watching Mac for weeks." Sid speculated.

"This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment attack. Our attacker is someone Mac knew and someone who hated him." Jo said.

"That could be anybody." Flack finally took his eyes off the ceiling and said angrily. "Mac's put away hundreds of criminals. He has more enemies than there are employees in this building."

"Well, let's cross reference any criminals who have been released recently with Mac's case files." Jo said.

"How far back do you want us to go?" Danny asked.

"Let's start with…6 months. We can work our way out from there." Jo responded.

Danny, Lindsay and Hawkes nodded and left the room. Sid headed back down to the lab and hoped he would find something else in Mac's personal belongings.

"Adam can go through the videotapes and sign in book." Flack said as he stood up and made a move to leave. "I'll go talk to the neighbors. See if anyone heard or saw anything suspicious."

"Don-" Jo began.

"Don't. Please."

Jo nodded and sighed as Flack left the room. She wanted desperately to help him but knew there was nothing she could do. He wouldn't accept any help right now. Instead she turned her attention to the only other person left in the room.

"Did you need something?" She asked Adam.

"Uh…well…Flack needs...no. No, I'm good." He got up and left the room. He wanted to help Flack out as well, but knew it was pointless to try.

Jo sighed again and started rifling through the images on the screen. What were they missing?


	5. Chapter 5

Again, thanks for your reviews and for reading. Glad to hear everyone's enjoying. My move is almost done so I will try to update more often!

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>"You <em>have<em> to give us some more time. We'll find something. You can't just close this case." Danny said, his face going red with anger.

"Detective Messer, I don't _have_to do anything." Chief Sinclair shot back. "It's been a week and you have nothing. You haven't managed to find a single lead. There are other cases piling up." He indicated to the pile on his desk.

"So what? We just give up on Mac? Case closed?" Don yelled.

"I'm not saying case closed. All I'm saying is that this case needs to be put on the back burner for a bit. It can't be a priority right now. You have spent the last week tearing Detective Taylor's condo apart, and you're _still_ in the same place as when you first started." Chief Sinclair tried to calmly explain, but found his voice rising. "You find evidence that leads you down a path, that's how cases work. You guys don't even see a clearing ahead. You have nothing."

Jo listened as Danny and Flack continued to argue. She felt drained and knew that no matter what they did, Sinclair wasn't going to change his mind. He was right though; in the week that they has been tearing Mac's place apart, looking into his old case files, they had found nothing. They knew exactly the same amount of information as they did when they first entered Mac's condo that night.

"Mac is fighting for his life. The least we can do is find out who did this and why." Danny tried to reason.

"And you tried to find that person, and got nowhere. Look, I'm sorry but this is the end of the discussion. I need these other cases solved as well. They are your new priority." Sinclair said moving the pile closer to the detectives.

"Mac is _our_priority!" Flack yelled. "How can you turn your back on one of your own?"

"I am not turning my back!" Sinclair yelled and hit his desk forcefully, palms open. "I am going by protocol. If this was _anyone_ else, we wouldn't be having this argument."

"But it's not anyone else!" Danny yelled.

"It's Mac! He has done everything for the lab!" Flack added.

"Excuse me." Jo said and stood up to leave, her phone ringing in her hand.

Her co-workers paid her no attention and continued to argue on.

Jo looked down and felt her heart leap into her throat as the hospital's number flashed before her. Over the past week, Mac's condition hadn't changed and she instantly thought the worst. She knew that no change was better than bad change, but no change also meant he wasn't getting any better.

As much as she didn't want to, her shaking hands answered the call.

"Jo Danville. Hi Dr. Davis, how are you? Tired. Long days with no sleep. I'm sure you know how it is." She felt nauseous. "Yes. Yes, of course. No, I appreciate it. Thank you." With that, she hung up the phone and made her way back into Sinclair's office.

Danny turned in time to see a dazed Jo walk back in – the tears evident in her eyes.

"Jo? What's going on?" Danny asked.

"That was Dr. Davis. Mac…Mac's condition became stable enough for them to test his brain function. As far as they can tell, there's no brain damage." Jo responded, a couple tears making their escape.

"Holy shit. That's amazing." Danny hugged Jo.

Jo turned and offered Flack a hug, which he took. She gave him an especially hard squeeze.

Their moment of joy was interrupted by the sound of Sinclair's sigh.

"One more day. If by noon tomorrow you have nothing, we're moving on."

"Thank you." Jo responded and stuck her hand out to shake his.

"Just find something. I want this sick son-of-a-bitch behind bars." Sinclair picked up his phone and began dialing.

"We will." Danny said as they exited the office.

"Hey, I've got a few things to do. Let me know if you find anything." Flack said and turned to head out in the opposite direction.

"Absolutely. Let us know if _you_ need anything." Jo called after him.

Flack waved his acknowledgement without turning to look back.

"He won't call you know." Danny said as they waited for the elevator.

"I know." Jo sighed. "I just need for him to know that we're here if he needs us."

* * *

><p>"Short guy. Tall guy. Smokin' hot blonde." Adam recited as he stared at the screen in front of him, feet propped up on the desk. He had been watching the security tapes on repeat for hours now. "Security guard checks out blondie's ass."<p>

"What are you doing?" Hawkes asked, eyebrows raised.

"Wha…oh!" A startled Adam squealed as he tipped the chair he was in and fell off the side. "Ow."

Hawkes chuckled and shook his head. "You all right?"

"Yeah. I'm ok. Scared me."

"Sorry." Hawkes paused. "So…what exactly where you doing?"

"I've seen this like a hundred times now. Same people, over and over again." He took his seat again and rubbed his eyes. "And I swear this next guy is taunting me. Like he's looking right up into the camera and saying, 'having fun?' with this stupid smirk on his face."

Hawkes moved closer and watched the man move across the screen.

"I think you need a break." Hawkes said and slapped Adam's shoulder lightly. "Jo wants us in the boardroom."

Adam nodded. He rewound the tape a bit and paused it on the picture of the smiling man.

"Stop taunting me!" He said angrily.

* * *

><p>Jo watched as everyone took a seat.<p>

"The hospital called." She could see the instant apprehension on their faces. "Mac's condition became stable. They were able to test his brain function." She took a breath. "As far as they can tell, there is no brain damage."

Danny pulled Lindsay close to him, tears rolling down her face. Smiles and sighs of relief could be seen and heard.

"That's amazing news." Sid added, a smile on his face.

"He didn't wake up or anything did he?" Lindsay asked, hopeful.

"No." He squeezed his wife's shoulder. "But, this is good. It means he's still in there fighting." Danny responded.

"Where's Flack?" Adam asked. "Should we call him?"

"He knows. He had some errands to run." Jo said.

The mood in the lab changed. There were smiles all around. Even though in the grand scheme of things it didn't mean Mac was free and clear, it was a small victory and something they needed.

"What about Sinclair? Is he shutting us down?" Hawkes asked, his previous smile replaced with his earlier look of worry.

"Not quite. We have till noon tomorrow." Jo responded.

"I think hearing that Mac was doing better helped our case." Danny added.

"I know we're all tired-" Jo began.

"We'll sleep at noon tomorrow." Lindsay cut her off.

"We only have one day. Let's make it count." Hawkes called and was out of his seat.

Jo could only smile as she watched her team leave. While she was close with some of her coworkers from her FBI days, it was never anything like this. These people were like a family – one that she was proud to be a part of.

* * *

><p>Flack shut the door behind him quietly. He took a moment to compose himself as he stared at his friend.<p>

It looked as though nothing had changed. All the same equipment was still attached to him and he lay there, doing nothing. The only difference from before was that now Flack knew Mac was still in there. Maybe deep down, but he was still somewhere in there.

Flack moved to the left hand side of the bed and took a seat. He gently took Mac's hand in his own.

"Hey, it's…Flack. I don't know if you can hear me or not. I really hope you can. I want you to know how sorry I am. I should have been there sooner. I could've run faster. I should have called the security desk, had the security guard go up ahead of me. I don't know. I should have done something more. I'm sorry." Flack fought back his tears. "You once saved my life and waited by my side." He took a deep breath. "Mac, if you can hear me, if you're still there, please give a sign. Just…squeeze my hand, wiggle your toes…anything."

Flack waited a moment, but nothing happened.

"I'm sorry I didn't stop by sooner. I know the guys have been visiting you all week. I just…didn't think I could handle seeing you like this again."

He rested his forehead on the railing not letting go of his friend's hand.

"I should have done more."


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks again for the reviews and continuing to read my story!

Enjoy =)

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><p>Jo rubbed her eyes and took a long sip of her coffee. It was now 9am, the time they had all agreed to meet and discuss their next course of action. She watched as one-by-one her co-workers made their way into the boardroom. She could tell by their long faces that no one had found anything new. She tried not to give up hope, but with her and Sinclair's meeting in three hours, she couldn't find that light at the end of the tunnel.<p>

Everyone sat down quietly, looking down at the table – no one wanted to go first. She looked around the room but did not see Flack. No had seen him since yesterdays meeting with Sinclair. Jo had tried to call him numerous times, but each time she was met with his voice mail.

"Okay…we're going to have to start at some point. Have we made any headway on the three missing people from the lobby's sign in book?" Jo asked.

"Dan Butler is currently out of town, left the next day." Lindsay pulled up the file of the 21-year-old student on the screen. "His family said he and his girlfriend went to the Bahamas for a vacation."

"We looked into his background, aside from living in the same building, no connection to Mac. The family said they only knew Mac in passing." Danny added.

"According to what the family told Flack, he should be back in three days." Lindsay concluded.

"Okay. Who's next?" Jo asked.

"Michelle Palmer." Hawkes pulled up her file. "Thirty-five, was picking her kids up from her ex-husband. We managed to get her on the phone. She lives in Vancouver, Canada."

"So no way we can get her back down here." Jo stated. "Why does she live in Canada and her ex in New York?"

"They're originally from Vancouver when Mr. Palmer was offered a promotion – one that meant he had to move. Mrs. Palmer didn't want to leave her family, uproot the kids…you get the picture. Again, no connection to Mac whatsoever." Hawkes said.

"The husband, like the Butlers, had seen Mac in passing, but didn't know who he was." Lindsay added.

"Expired visa?" Jo asked. "Maybe Mac found out? A bit of a stretch I know…"

"We had that thought too." Danny responded. "He's here legally. We checked with Canadian authorities as well. No priers. He's clean."

"Divorce was amicable. Nothing out of the ordinary there." Lindsay added.

Jo exhaled deeply. They had interviewed all but three people listed on the sign in book, and everyone on Mac's floor. No one had been of any help. Everyone listed had no connection to Mac and was a regular that the security guard Mike knew.

Jo could only pray this last name would get them somewhere.

"As for J. Crown, the security guard said his name is Jake. There are seven Jake Crowns in New York." Lindsay pulled up each of their files one-by-one. "Flack interviewed all of them. All deny ever being in that building." Lindsay began.

"We showed their pictures to the security guard – here's the catch – he's never seen any of them." Danny added.

"We had Adam go through each picture and watch for them on the security tape; none of them were in the building." Lindsay concluded.

"So, our final guest is still a mystery?" Jo asked. "Where is Adam by the way?"

They all looked around and for the first time realized Adam wasn't in the room.

"And Flack?" Danny asked.

"I had him run some errands for me." Jo interjected. She wasn't sure how much longer she could cover for him.

"I'll go get Adam." Hawkes made a motion to get up but was interrupted by the door opening abruptly.

"Adam, we started-" Jo began.

"No, wait. I got it. I think I know who did this." Adam panted, excited and out of breath.

"What? How?"

"Okay…so I kept watching the security videos over and over and this one guy, he just kept taunting me." Adam began.

Hawkes gasped loudly and shook his head. _Really? __This__ again?_

"Taunting you?" Danny asked skeptically.

"He's watched the tapes too many times. Needs a break. There is no man taunting him." Hawkes stated firmly.

"No, wait. His stupid face gave me an idea."

Hawkes shook his head.

"Make sure you add 'his stupid face' to your report." Jo said.

"Uh…yeah, sorry. Anyways, I ran his picture through the database and got a match." He pulled up a picture on the screen for everyone to see. "Patrick Masters."

Everyone was stunned for a moment as they read all of his priers.

"I know that name." Danny said, trying to remember where he had heard it.

"He owns Skyline Industries." Adam stated. "He's built some of the most expensive homes and condos around the city. Every mob guy or bad guy in town uses him." Adam paused. "He's also been arrested six times for drugs, murder, trafficking, you name it. Every time he gets off on a technicality; witness dies, witness decides not to talk, evidence tampering."

"So he pays everyone off," Hawkes began.

"Or kills them." Lindsay finished his thought for him.

"Exactly." Adam said. "And guess who arrested him four out of those six times?"

"Mac." Jo said.

"Right. And the last time he was arrested, Mac made sure he got time. Fifteen to twenty, but he got out three months ago, only nine years into his sentence. It says good behavior, but I think he paid the parole board off." Adam concluded.

"And he came back for his revenge." Lindsay stated.

"Let's get him in here." Jo said as she stood up from her seat.

"What about Sinclair?" Lindsay asked.

"Let's talk to Masters first. See where this leads us." Jo responded.

As Jo made her way back to her office, she pulled her phone out and began dialing.

"Don, if you get this, please call me back right away. We may have a lead. Danny and Hawkes are on their way to pick up our suspect."

* * *

><p>"Holy shit." Danny began. "Look at the size of this place."<p>

They pulled up a set of gates and took a moment to gaze at the mansion in front of them. They were in the suburbs of the city, where the rich and powerful lived. The mailbox on their right read _The__ Masters_ on it, while the letters _P_ and _M_ where embroidered into the gates.

Hawkes rolled down his window and hit the buzzer. They were met with a male voice over the intercom.

"_Yes_?"

"This is Detective Hawkes and Detective Messer. Is Patrick Masters home?"

"_You __are __speaking __with __him.__What __can __I__ do __for __you __gentlemen_?"

"We'd like to speak with you about Mac Taylor. Any chance you would let us in?" Hawkes questioned, hoping this would go quick and easy.

"_Absolutely._"

Both Danny and Hawkes were surprised at how quickly Patrick Masters had agreed. Within seconds the gates began to swing open. It left them feeling slightly uneasy.

They drove up to the front door and got out of the car. Before they had could reach the door to ring the bell, it swung open and they were met with a pair of brown eyes and a smiling face.

"Hello detectives. Any chance we could do this down at the station? My wife has some guests over and I wouldn't want to be a bother."

"We were just about to ask you the same thing." Danny responded.

"Wonderful. Let me grab my coat and we'll head out." With that, Patrick turned and went back into his home.

Danny and Hawkes exchanged looks.

"Weird." Danny stated.

* * *

><p>Jo was reading over Masters' files when her phone rang. She didn't recognize the number flashing before her.<p>

"Jo Danville." She answered. "Mrs. Brown, how are you? I'm sorry, Detective Flack is doing what? Oh my." She sighed. "I will be right over. I'm so sorry about this. What's the address?"

Jo wrote down the address and hung up the phone. She covered her face with her palms for a moment and took a few deep breaths. Looking at her watch she figured she could pick up Flack and be back in time to see Masters being questioned.


End file.
